Jim Commentucci / The Post-StandardWest Genesee teammates including quarterback Tim Moran celebrate their 42-21 win over Monroe-Woodbury in the Class AA state championship game Sunday at the Carrier Dome back in November.

What do you think of when I say "Bishop Ludden"

Basketball, right?

OK, now try "West Genesee"

Lacrosse is what popped in your head first, correct?

Well, you aren't completely off considering the wild success both of those schools have had in those respective sports.

But the 2007 version of this game with Bishop Ludden and West Genny points in a different direction.

Football State Champs.

As I wrote about when it happened, I had the good fortune of having attended both schools in my academic career. It's one thing to read a story in a newspaper or see a TV report about how unlikely a football state title would be at either school ANY YEAR, let alone in the SAME YEAR.

Having walked the hallways of both schools, I can tell you not in my wildest dreams could you have come up with this scenario.

The schools are very close, yet are very different in the sense that West Genesee is a big public school with the student body all from the same general area where Ludden is a small private school that sees students from all over CNY enter its doors.

Jim Commentucci / The Post-StandardBishop Ludden teammates including Chris Harding and Patrick Rosanio celebrate their 21-16 Class C state championship game win over Dobbs Ferry Sunday at the Carrier Dome.

But now, it matters not that a player from Ludden has to wear a uniform to school where the only uniform a West Genny player has to wear is his football one. Players from both teams will wear the same title forever.

2007 state champs.

These titles also showed that hard word and a little humility can pay off in life.

West Genny head coach Steve Bush showed the world he still can coach a little after being shown the door at SU not too long ago.

Bishop Ludden head coach John Cosgrove finally saw years of hard work pay off. He also got a new hairstyle out of the deal thanks to a promise he probably never thought he'd have to keep.

The two schools are so close you could almost throw a football from one to the other. What will make the story of both of these schools winning state titles in football is that they will always be linked together in time. 2007 was the year both Bishop Ludden and West Genesee saw another sport emerge into a champion besides the ho-hum success the basketball and lacrosse programs produce year in and year out.